We are seeking candidates for a Ph.D. position aimed at investigating the neural processing of natural sounds using (laminar) functional MRI (fMRI) at 7 and 9.4 Tesla and intracranial electroencephalography (iEEG), under the supervision of prof. Elia Formisano (Department of Cognitive Neuroscience) and dr. Christian Herff (School for Mental Health and Neuroscience).

The PhD position is fully supported by a grant from the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) (Aud2Sem: https://www.nwo.nl/en/projects/40620go030), which has the overall aim to unravel the neural mechanisms enabling the recognition of everyday sounds and their flexible categorization at multiple levels of semantic abstraction. Aud2Sem involves both the development of neurobiologically-grounded computational models of sound recognition and the experimental testing of these models using functional neuroimaging.

For this position, the primary tasks and responsibilities of the PhD student will be to participate actively in experimental design, acquisition, and analysis of fMRI and iEEG data. FMRI research will take place at the Department for Cognitive Neuroscience and the Maastricht Brain Imaging Center at Maastricht University, which has access to an MR-lab with 3 Tesla, 7 Tesla and 9.4 Tesla human MRI systems (www.scannexus.nl).

iEEG research will take place at the Neural Interfacing Lab (https://neuralinterfacinglab.github.io/) within the Department of Neurosurgery of Maastricht University and at Kempenhaeghe Epilepsy Center.

The student will be integrated in an existing team of interdisciplinary researchers (see https://mbic-auditorylab.nl/), which includes local and international collaborators (Dr. Bruno L. Giordano, Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone – INT, Marseille).

Candidates should have a MSc degree in one of the following or related disciplines: (Cognitive) Neuroscience, Neuropyschology or equivalent, (Biomedical) Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics or equivalent.

In addition to these requirements, candidates should preferably have:

• A genuine interest in the topic of (auditory) perception;
• Training and/or experience in both theory and practice of functional Neuroimaging (preferably, fMRI and/or iEEG);
• Proficiency in scientific programming (Matlab, Python or any other language);
• Knowledge of signal analysis and statistics;
• Knowledge of (or willingness to learn with support from the team) the theory of machine learning and its applications to neuroimaging data analysis;
• Excellent oral and written English communication;
• Demonstrated ability to work independently as well as in a team.

The full-time position is offered for four years (1+3), with a yearly evaluation.

Your salary would be € 2,541 gross per month in the first year up to € 3,247 gross per month in the fourth year according to the PhD-candidate salary scale. On top of this, there is an 8% holiday and an 8.3% year-end allowance.

The terms of employment of Maastricht University are set out in the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities (CAO). Furthermore, local UM provisions also apply. For more information look at the website www.maastrichtuniversity.nl > About UM > Working at UM.

Maastricht University

Maastricht University is renowned for its unique, innovative, problem-based learning system, which is characterized by a small-scale and student-oriented approach. Research at UM is characterized by a multidisciplinary and thematic approach, and is concentrated in research institutes and schools. Maastricht University has around 22,000 students and 5,000 employees. Reflecting the university's strong international profile, a fair amount of both students and staff are from abroad. The university hosts 6 faculties: Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Faculty of Law, School of Business and Economics, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience.
For more information, visit www.maastrichtuniversity.nl.

Department of Cognitive Neuroscience (CN)

Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology & Neuroscience, Maastricht University, The Netherlands

Auditory perception and cognition group, Maastricht Brain Imaging Centre (MBIC),